The last time I flew First Class on a plane was almost 15 years ago. I was returning home from a 14-day mission trip to Kolkata, India. I was upgraded, and it couldn’t have been timelier. I was exhausted and needed the “comfort” after herding teenagers and college students for 13 days of ministry throughout the nation of India We were flying Singapore Airlines, the most prestigious airline in the world, and I got to fly First Class!
I will never forget the service: the food, the fresh juice and chilled bottled water, the steaming hot towels to “freshen up” every so often, and the impeccable service and care. The comfort was OUT OF THIS WORLD! It all started out with a simple question, “Mr. Lewiston, are you comfortable?”
I have never forgotten that story, and I have been reminded of it several times throughout the last 15 years. Not too many people have asked, “Mr. Lewiston, are you comfortable?” but I have been reminded to be comfortable in who I am. I have been reminded to be comfortable in my own skin. I have figured out that being comfortable in your own skin is the key to success, purpose, and the ability to perform to one’s highest ability. We have to be confident in who God made us to be!
The Bible gives us some pretty clear and passionate helps in being who God wants us to be. 1 Cor. 9:22-27…
19-23 Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I’ve become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn’t just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!
24-25 You’ve all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You’re after one that’s gold eternally.
26-27 I don’t know about you, but I’m running hard for the finish line. I’m giving it everything I’ve got. No sloppy living for me! I’m staying alert and in top condition. I’m not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself.
I love this passage, it teaches me that it is not about my comfort, but it is about the end result of a life that is lived for Him! The result is a finished race and a job well done. Not a comfortable life, but a life well lived!
I won’t hear from Jesus, “Mr. Lewiston, are you comfortable?” But I will get to hear, “Well done, thy go and faithful servant!”
That is WAY BETTER!